Article of furniture having releasably interconnected superimposed sections



April 2, 1957 H. w. vENDlG ARTICLE OF' FURNITURE HAVING RELEASBLY INTERCONNECTED SUPERIMPOSED SECTIONS 5 Sheets-Sheet Filed June 28, 1954 April 2, 1957 H. ARTICLE OF' FURNITURE HAVING RELEASABLY INTERCONNECTED SUPERIMPOSED SECTIONS w vr-:NDxG 2,787,380

Filed June 28, 1954 3 Sheets-Sheet 2 WIIIIIIPIIHl JNVENToR. I /e/ #6002? l, 'ffii/? AWO/MEX ARTICLE OF FURNITURE HAVING RELEASABLY MTERCONNECTED SUPERIMPOSED SECTIONS Herb W. Vendig, Kansas City, Kans.

Application June 28, 1954,l Serial No. 439,696

1 Claim. (Cl. 211-135) This invention relates to improvements in furniture and has for its primary object the provision of a functional piece of furniture composed of releasably interconnected parts so formed as to facilitate packaging for storage and shipment and permitting quick and easy assembly without the need of particular skill or a large number of tools.

It is the most important object of the present invention to provide an article of furniture composed essentially of a top, and supporting legs therefor, the legs in turn being made up of a number of spaced, vertical posts provided with spaced plates interconnecting the same and serving as the means of attaching the legs to the top, as well as providing a base for the article of furniture.

Another object of the present invention relates to the way in which the legs are connected to the plates and to the said top.

A still further object of the present invention relates to the way in which, through use of the principles embodied in the invention, various types of articles of furniture may be made employing the basic concepts of a top, a pair of legs made up of spaced, vertical posts, and a panel interconnecting the legs, as well as a shelf where desired.

Other objects include important details of construction, all of which will be made clear or become apparent as the following specification progresses.

In the drawings:

Figure l is a front elevational view of one form of composite article of furniture made according to the present invention.

Fig. 2 is a top plan view thereof, parts being broken away and in section to reveal details of construction.

Fig. 3 is an enlarged, fragmentary, detailed, cross-sectional view taken on line III-III of Fig. 1.

Fig. 4 is an end elevational View of the article of furniture shown in Figs. 1 to 3 inclusive.

Fig. 5 is a View similar to Fig. 2, broken away still further to illustrate the manner of mounting the shelf of the article of furniture.

Fig. 6 is an enlarged, fragmentary, detailed, cross-sec tional View taken on line VI-Vl of Fig. 4.

Fig. 7 is a detailed, cross-sectional view taken on line VlI--VII of Fig. 6.

Fig. 8 is a front elevational view of another form of article of furniture made according to the present invention.

Fig. 9 is an elevational view of still another form of the invention.

Fig. 10 is a top plan view showing the top broken away to reveal details of construction.

Fig. 1l is an enlarged, detailed, cross-sectional view taken on line Xl-XI of Fig. l0; and

Fig. l2 is an enlarged, detailed, cross-sectional view taken on line XII- XII of Fig. 10.

The article of furniture shown in Fig. 1 of the drawings includes basically a top, broadly designated by the numeral 14, a pair of identical legs 16 and 18 depending nited States Patent O 2,787,380 Patented Apr. 2, 1957 from the top 14 and interconnected by a front panel 20, a shelf 22 near the lowermost ends of the legs 16 and 18 (see Figs. 2, and 5 to 7 inclusive), a pair of spaced, longer legs 24 and 26, and a panel 28 interconnecting the legs 24 and 26.

Legs 16 and 18 are each semi-cylindrical in transverse cross-section as seen in Fig. 2, and include an upper semi circular plate 30 and a similarly-shaped lowermost plate 32. Plates 30 and 32 are joined by a plurality of vertical, spaced-apart posts 34, all of which posts 34 are set in sockets 36 formed in the plates 30 and 32 as shown best in Fig. 6.

While the top 14, posts 34, plates 30 and 32 and panel 20 will be packaged in a disassembled condition, a suitable adhesive may be used in the sockets 36 when connecting the posts 34 to the plates 30 and 32 in order to hold the posts 34 in the sockets 36. With the exception of one of the posts designated by the numeral 34a, which is of increased diameter, all of the posts 34 may be of the same diameter. Posts 34a are provided with vertical grooves 38 for receiving the proximal vertical edges of panel 2t). Uppermost plates 30 lie flatly against the lowermost surface of top 14 and are releasably connected thereto by bolts 40, depending from the top 14 and pro'- vided with wing nuts 42.

Shelf 22 is within the plane of the lowermost plate 32 and is provided with a longitudinal groove 44 as shown in Fig. 7 for receiving the lowermost longitudinal edge of the panel 20. Additionally, shelf 22 is provided with cavities 46 in the lowermost face thereof, lined with cavities 48 in plates 32 for receiving a connecting strip 5G that is fastened to the shelf 22 and to the plates 32 by nails or other elements 52, all as shown in Figs. 5 and 6 of the drawings.

Legs 24 and 26 are substantially identical to the legs 16 and 18 in that the same include a plurality of spaced, vertical posts 54 interconnecting uppermost plates S6 and lowermost plates 58, the latter of which serve as the base for the entire unit. Legs 54 are secured to the plates 56 and 58 in the same manner as above described through use of sockets 60. One post 54a of each leg 24 and 26 respectively, is of increased diameter and provided with a vertical groove 62 for receiving the proximal vertical edge of the panel 28 as shown in Fig. 3.

An elongated, relatively narrow strip 64 beneath shelf 22, is provided with a longitudinal groove 66 for receiv` ing the uppermost edge of panel 28. Panel 20 is provided with a similar strip 68 spanning the distance between upper plates 30 and having a groove (not shown) similar to groove 66 for receiving the panel 20. A bottom strip 70 underlying the panel 28 and spanning the distance between the lowermost semi-circular plates 58, has a groove 72 for receiving the lower edge of panel 28.

Plates 58 are joined to the strip 70 by a plate-like re inforcing element 74 secured to the legs 58 and to the strip 70 by fastening elements 76, it being seen in Fig. 3 that the lowermost faces of the plates 58 and the strip 70 are provided with cavities 78 and 80 respectively for receiving the reinforcing element 74.

Plates 32 directly overlie the plates 56 and are connected thereto by bolts 82 having wing nuts 84.

The top 14 of itself is of novel character and, to this end, there is provided a pair of plates 86 and 88 that may be rectangular as shown and held in spaced parallelism by transverse spacers 90. The lower plate 88 is smaller than the plate 86 and a pair of triangular-shaped gussets 92 is provided at each corner respectively of the top 14. All of the top 14 thus far enumerated is en` closed by a flexible envelope or covering 94 having a peripheral side wall or edge 96 that spans the distance between the edges of the plates 86 and 88 but is not otherwise attached to any part of the top 14. One suitable substance for producing the cover 94 is a polyethylene Y product readily available on the open market and which may be sprayed upon the top 14 to form the cover 94.

The article of furniture shown in Fig. 8 of the drawings is broadly designated by the numeral 98 and consists of top 14 mounted directly upon the upper plates 56 through bolts 40 and Wing nuts 42, with the lower face of top 14 engaging directly the strip 64 of panel 28.

The article of furniture shown in Fig. 9 is broadly designated by the numeral 100 and is formed by removing the plates 56 and all structure shown in Fig. 1 below the plates S6, as well as by removing the panel 20, the shelf 22 and the strip 68. Thus the article of furniture 100 consists of top 14 and legs 16 and 18, each of which are made up of plates 30 and 32 and posts 34 and 34a, the plates 30 being joined to the top 14 by bolts 40 and wing nuts 42.

It isA now seen that three differing types of articles of furniture may be produced from the same basic design, and that in each instance the entire unit may be packaged and shipped in a disassembled condition, requiring very little space because of the capability of being placed in a relatively at condition within a suitable shipping carton.

The user may be provided with suitable instructions for assembly and without exercise of any particular skill may interconnect the various parts to produce the article of furniture which he may desire. It is manifest that various other types of furniture may be produced through use of the basic principles hereinabove set forth and, therefore, while many details of construction may be varied within the spirit of the invention it is desired to be limited only by the scope of the appended claim.

Having thus described the invention what is claimed as .new and desired to besccured by Letters Patent is:

An article of furniture comprising an upper section and a lower section, each including a pair of spaced, semicylindrical legs, said legs each being provided with an upper and a lower, horizontal, semi-circular plate having a semi-circular row of equally spaced, vertical posts interconnecting the same, there being an upright panel for each section respectively spanning the distance between the legs thereof and interconnecting a pair of posts; horizontal members interconnecting the upper and lower plates of each section respectively and joined to the proximal horizontal edges of the panels; and a top resting on the upper plates of the upper section and having readily releasable means securing the same thereto, the lower plates of the upper section resting on the upper plates of the lower section and having readily releasable means securing the same thereto, said pair of posts of each section and said horizontal members having grooves receiving the corresponding edges of the panels.

References Cited in the le of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS D. 93,579 Rice et al. Oct. 9, 1934 406,191 Belden et al. July 2, 1889 1,145,205 Mills July 6, 1915 1,391,008 Richmond Sept. 20, 1921 1,540,012 January June 2, 1925 1,935,682 Wege Nov. 21, 1933 2,681,261 Blink June 15, 1954 2,690,370 Mauser Sept. 28, 1954 FOREIGN PATENTS 339,162 Great Britain Dec. 4, 1930 OTHER REFERENCES Furniture Age, p. 36, October 1952. Home Furnishing, p. 19, November 1933. 

